


Safe

by Zorro_sci



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Protective Bruce Banner, Protective Tony Stark, all the feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-07
Updated: 2014-07-07
Packaged: 2018-02-07 20:29:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1912773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zorro_sci/pseuds/Zorro_sci
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bruce Banner can't explain it, but from almost the moment he meets Tony Stark he wants to keep him safe, and Tony feels the same way about him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Don't Leave Me Alone

**Author's Note:**

> In response to thus prompt: http://avengerkink.livejournal.com/17613.html?thread=41269453&

Some would say it started when the Hulk caught Tony out of the sky. That the rage monster's mighty leap was a sign of things to come between Hulk's alter-ego and the billionaire, but Bruce would disagree. While the rescue had ensured that Tony lived long enough for the two of them to start a relationship, he would say that the defining moment came the day after. After the Avengers had seen off Thor and Loki in Central Park, and after he had reluctantly agreed to _briefly_ stop by Stark Tower to see the R &D department before he was dropped at the bus station.

The pair had silently ridden in the elevator to reach the top group of floors in the Tower. The silence had been a strange mix of both uncomfortable and comfortable, but was forgotten as soon as the doors opened to reveal the splendor of ten floors of labs, all with floors, ceilings and walls made of thick, tempered glass. From the lowest floor, where they were standing, they could look up through each of the floors and see the various pieces of equipment and work areas above them. Bruce was fairly awed and couldn't help but suck in a breath in surprise. 

"What do you think?" Tony had asked as he gestured broadly to encompass as much of the space as he could with the motion.

"It's very impressive," Bruce replied.

"Candyland, right?" Tony said with a smirk as he saw the expression of awe on his new friend's face.

"Yeah. It certainly lives up to the hype," Bruce had whispered.

"So, what do you say doc, care to play?" Tony casually asked.

"I really should get going," Bruce hedged.

"Oh, I understand," Tony answered robotically. _I wish you would stay. I don't want to be alone._

When Tony looked down at the floor and refused to meet Bruce's gaze, the scientist took a moment to study the other man. Suddenly it was as if he could hear everything the engineer wasn't saying, and he knew how desperately Tony wanted company. Wanted someone to stay, just so there was another living being by his side after all the things that had happened in the last few days.

Bruce saw a vulnerability in Tony that he hadn't seen before, and it made him want to protect him. To make sure that the other man was taken care of. So despite the voice in his head that told him that he needed to run, that the longer he stayed the more danger he was in, he found himself unable to leave.

"On second thought, I suppose it might be fun to check out the labs," Bruce had stated.

The way Tony's eyes lit up at Bruce's words left Bruce with no doubt that he was doing the right thing. He could always leave a little later. Only he didn't leave later that day, or the following day, or even the day after that. 

When Ms. Potts had returned, Bruce had thought that he would be able to take his leave. Tony wouldn't be alone, and the pair would probably rather not have him around to get in their way. Instead, there had been tensions between Pepper and Tony the second she stepped foot back in the Tower. She was upset with him for putting himself in danger, and he was upset with her for not answering his call when he thought he was going to die. They argued, and Bruce became Tony's shoulder to cry on, both while the fighting was ongoing and after Pepper gave Tony an ultimatum, that he needed to part with Iron Man or part with her, and the pair split up.

Before Bruce knew it he was living in the Tower, but at least he was there so Tony had someone to talk to on the nights he had nightmares about the battle of New York or started feeling low about Pepper. He couldn't really explain why he felt so strongly towards a man that he had only known a couple of weeks, but he knew that he would do what it took to make sure Tony didn't feel alone.


	2. I Feel Like I'm Being Watched

Adjusting to living in Stark Tower was far from easy for Bruce. He had survived on the run by being incredibly suspicious and observant. Noticing the slightest change in his surrounding or the person who seemed to be going out of their way to stay close, and recognizing the feeling of being watched or followed. These were the things that had kept him one step ahead of the military as he had trekked the globe.

In Tony's palatial home he probably had less reason to worry than he had in years, but he couldn't relax. He constantly felt like he was being watched, and it made him very jumpy. It also made sleeping nearly impossible. His fight or flight response took over the second he started to drift off and realized once again that he was not alone. 

Logically, he knew that the feeling he was getting was from the cameras that were integrated into all parts of the Tower. He knew that Tony's AI, JARVIS, had access to all of the building and monitored it. He trusted Tony and by extension trusted JARVIS, but no matter how much he tried to reason with himself that the cameras were not a threat and he didn't need to be so tense, he was unable to shake his nervousness.

One day, after several days without sleep due to his uneasiness, Tony came to join Bruce in the lab. He frowned when he took in the physicist's rumpled appearance, and the deep, dark, bruise-like bags under his eyes. He gave him a studying glance, and walked around the room to stand by his elbow.

"Not sleeping?" He questioned simply.

"Not really," Bruce conceded.

"Something wrong? Problems with your apartment? I can change it. Anything you need, just ask." Tony offered. 

"No everything's fine," _except the cameras everywhere_ Bruce tried to reassure. Tony had been a more than gracious host, providing everything Bruce needed or Tony thought Bruce might ever want or need, (the selection of nearly every tea known to man that filled two whole cupboards in his apartment kitchen certainly attested to that). The last thing that Bruce wanted to do was seem ungrateful or make Tony feel like he had in anyway been remiss in his hosting duties.

"Are you sure?" Tony responded doubtfully, raising an eyebrow in question.

"Yeah, I've just had a lot on my mind lately. ( _like the uneasiness from being constantly watched_ ) It's been making it a bit hard to sleep," _or not constantly be on edge_ Bruce brushed off Tony's concern.

"If you say so," Tony replied dubiously.

"So . . . I came by because I'm ordering a pizza and I was wondering if you were hungry. Should I add a veggie pizza to the order?" Tony changed the subject.

"Yeah, that'd be nice. Thanks," Bruce replied, grateful for the shift in conversation.

"No problem, I'll go take care of it," Tony said as he left the lab.

Once Tony was in the hall, Bruce let out a breath he'd been holding. He was glad Tony hadn't pressed the issue, because as uncomfortable as all the cameras and JARVIS' constant presence made him, he knew that they were important to Tony. One night, while he was sulking about Pepper and getting drunk, he had admitted as much, saying that the last time he was without JARVIS for any significant length of time was Afghanistan. He'd gone on and on about how JARVIS was the only one he could trust; the only one who hadn't betrayed him. Given all of that, it felt wrong to complain about something his very generous host valued so highly.

Meanwhile, in the hallway Tony was digging to see if he could pinpoint the cause of Bruce's insomnia. He had noticed that the physicist had become more and more haggard since moving in, and he wanted to help his friend. If he couldn't sleep in the Tower their new arrangement would be far from sustainable, and honestly, Tony really didn't want Bruce to leave.

"Hey J, have you noticed any patterns, anything that could be responsible for Bruce's lack of sleep?" Tony asked his AI.

"Sir, I have noticed that when Dr. Banner attempts to sleep he often jolts to awareness and looks directly at each camera in the area in turn. He also seems very aware of their presence in all parts of the Tower, and frequently looks for them while entering a new area," JARVIS reported.

"So the cameras are making him nervous," Tony mused aloud.

"It would appear so, sir."

Tony mulled over this revelation as he took the elevator down to collect the pizza that had been left with the receptionist. He didn't want Bruce to feel uncomfortable, and it seemed like being under constant observation was doing just that. Still, he wasn't quite sure how he should respond.

He rode the elevator back up to the lab, and entered with the hot pizzas. As he and Bruce ate he noticed that every few minutes his companion was discretely eying the cameras in the room, as if he needed to remind himself where they were located. 

Finally, Tony couldn't hold back anymore, so he said, "The video surveillance in the building makes you nervous, doesn't it?"

Bruce froze unsure of how to respond; startled by the sudden, directness of the question.

"I've seen you sweep your eyes up at each of the cameras in the room at least three times while we were eating. If they bother you why didn't you tell me?" 

"It's your house. You should be able to do what you want with security and surveillance," Bruce shrugged.

"It's **our** home, and if you don't feel comfortable, then something needs to change," Tony corrected. "JARVIS? Turn off all the cameras in the residential part of the Tower, the private elevator, and Dr. Banner's lab."

"Yes sir," the AI intoned.

"Tony, you don't need to . . ." Bruce started.

"Of course I do. You should feel safe in your own home," Tony countered.

Bruce thanked him, and that night he finally slept.


	3. Everybody Wants a Piece of Me

More time passed, and Bruce grew comfortable in his new home. He even made peace with the constant presence of JARVIS and the cameras, and had them turned back on once he had adjusted to the idea. After much arguing with himself, he came to the conclusion that they would be helpful if someone who was trying to pursue him somehow managed to breach Stark Tower.

He and Tony had fallen into a comfortable pattern, frequently working together and sharing meals. They even occasionally had a movie night when they needed a break from their work. They unsurprisingly had a lot in common, and quickly found themselves best friends, (though secretly they both wanted more, but they were too afraid of ruining their friendship, because they thought their feelings were one-sided, to voice such desires).

One evening, as Bruce was rerunning an experiment that had produced unexpected results the first time through, Tony burst into the lab and started talking without any preliminaries or greetings, as he often did.

"So Bruce, do you have any suits in your closet? Pepper did most of the clothes shopping for you, she has much better taste than I do, but I don't know if she only bought you casual everyday clothes or if she got you some formal wear too."

"I think there's a suit in my closet, but I'm not sure it fits. I've never put it on. Besides, why would I need a suit?" Bruce questioned with a raised eyebrow. 

"If Pepper bought you a suit it'll fit. Between JARVIS' measurements, and Pepper's freaky ability to know a person's size just by looking at them, there's no doubt that it's right. And you'll need the suit for the gala that Stark Industries is throwing next week. That is, if you're coming," Tony quickly explained.

Bruce was tempted to say that he wasn't going and return to his work. He had no desire to be at a party surrounded by people. Especially not at a high profile gala with cameras and press and powerful people, some of whom no doubt were associated with some of the very people who had hunted Bruce in the past. Only, he couldn't just say no. There was something hanging unspoken in the air, something that made Bruce hesitant.

Tony saw the indecision on Bruce's face and was quick to backtrack, "I'm sorry Bruce, I shouldn't have asked. Of course you don't want to go. Hell, I don't want to go, but Pepper said that it would look bad if I wasn't there. What with being the 'face of the company' and all. Funny thing is, she makes this big deal out of how I need to go, but she's not even going. I mean, the company might have my name, but she's the CEO. But apparently she had 'CEO business' so I have to be the show pony."

Then Bruce understood. At an event like that there would be a lot of attention focused on Tony, including from people Tony didn't want attention from. They would all be vying for his attention, wanting things from him, and generally swarming around him like vultures. If he went with someone it offered him a certain level of protection. Someone to turn his attention to if someone's focus on him became too intense. Someone to call him away if he ended up in an uncomfortable situation. A layer of defense between him and those who meant to try to use him. Usually that defense would be Pepper, but it seemed that she wouldn't be available.

Suddenly he understood so deeply and clearly he couldn't imagine doing anything but going with Tony. His friend didn't deserve to face all of that alone. He deserved a safety net, and Bruce was willing to be that net.

"I'll go," Bruce said suddenly.

"What?" Tony asked. "Bruce, you don't have to . . ."

"I want to," Bruce cut him off determinedly. He didn't want Tony to think he bullied him into going or feel guilty. "So when is this thing?"

"Next Friday at eight," Tony answered, still looking surprised at Bruce's sudden and decisive decision.

"Great, I'll be ready," Bruce said.

When the following Friday arrived Bruce tagged along in a handsome black suit, and the pair stuck close to each other all night, as much for their own benefit as the others'.


	4. Summoning Old Ghosts

At the gala several people had asked Bruce and Tony if they were "together." The repeated questions and carefully concealed, (though still easily noticed by each other), flushes had lead to a serious conversation between the two men about what they wanted from their relationship. They were both relieved and a little chagrined, (because weren't they supposed to be geniuses? How had they not noticed earlier?), to find that they both wanted to pursue a romantic relationship. So, a couple days after the gala they had gone on their first date, and things had gone really well.

With their new relationship came new territory. Territory such as physical displays of affection, (though no sex yet, because Bruce wanted to be sure a certain green, rage monster didn't pay them a visit at an inopportune time), and discussing the possibility of Bruce moving into the penthouse and the two of them sharing a bed. However, their new relationship also came with new difficulties.

The most obvious challenge was the Hulk. Bruce had stopped their make out sessions more than once because he was afraid he wouldn't be able to maintain control. The other challenge being Bruce's adverse response to Tony's drinking.

When they had just been friends there were many nights where Tony would drink himself into oblivion while Bruce sat with him and listened to his drunken babble. While Bruce had worried for his friend on those nights, he had not had any noticeably adverse reaction to the situation. It turns out that it was really important that Tony was across the massive penthouse living room on those nights. 

Now that they were in a relationship the amount of space they kept between them had drastically decreased, but when Tony had more than one or two drinks, (or even a drop of gin, which had been Bruce's father's drink of choice), that became a massive problem, because the overwhelming smell of alcohol caused Bruce to flashback to horrible memories and feel an uncontrollable urge to run and hide.

After the third time Bruce ran out of the room when Tony approached him after a heavy drinking session, Tony decided to approach him about it. Clearly Tony being drunk bothered him, but he wasn't sure what had changed that was making him so much more upset than he seemed to be on previous occasions. 

He waited until he was sober and tried to start a conservation with his boyfriend about the topic, but Bruce refused to tell him what was going on. As far as Bruce was concerned, Tony was a grown man and he should be able to decided to drink or not drink as he saw fit. Besides, it wasn't Tony's fault that Bruce's father had been an abusive drunk, and he certainly had no obligation to modify his behavior because of Bruce's childhood scars.

Finally, a frustrated Tony decided to look through Bruce's SHIELD files to see if there were any clues there. When he saw Bruce's biographical information, and realized what Bruce must be associating his actions with, he immediately decided to cut back on his drinking. Sure he'd used it as a coping mechanism for years, but he had no desire to remind Bruce in anyway of the time he was a scared, helpless child held at the malicious whim of his drunken father. He wanted Bruce to be safe, even from his own awful memories.


	5. Nightmares

Time went on, and the pair grew closer. Potential plans for Bruce moving into the penthouse became a reality, and the pair began sharing a bed, (first just for sleep, and then for other activities once Bruce was assured of his control). Everything was going great, except for the one thing neither of them could escape, nightmares.

Though both of them had had less nightmares since they started sharing a bed, there were still too many nights when one of them woke up in a panic. The other was always there to soothe him, to reassure and comfort, but that wasn't always enough. Some nights were spent sleepless, others interrupted by repeated nightmares that doggedly refused to go away.

Tony frequently dreamed of the battle of New York. Of going through a wormhole wondering if he would ever return, and then losing consciousness as he started to plummet back toward earth, certain that he was going to die. Nearly as often he dreamed of the Ten Rings and what had happened what seemed like a lifetime ago, and yet like yesterday, in a cave in Afghanistan.

On the nights when those nightmares wouldn't leave him alone he wished he had the strong, protective presence of the Hulk beside him. Big, green and indestructible. More than capable of taking on any threat, and able to keep Tony safe. Tony would never tell Bruce about his desire though. He knew that the process of changing into the Hulk was painful and jarring. He also knew that even as he gained more control and grew to understand the Other Guy better, Bruce still didn't like letting him out unless there was no other option.

So Tony was surprised when, as if he had read his thoughts, Bruce asked, "Would you feel safer if Hulk was here?"

"Bruce, you hate letting out . . ." Tony started.

"Would you feel safer?" Bruce repeated.

"Don't be silly, the transformation . . ." Tony started to protest again.

"Would you?" Bruce pressed again, but this time in a gentle whisper as he conspicuously studied Tony's face. 

Tony merely nodded, and before he could argue that that shouldn't mean that Bruce should transform, he was sitting next to the Hulk who told him that he would "keep Tony safe." Tony slept better that night than he had in a long time, and any night he seemed particularly distressed after that Bruce brought out Hulk without even being asked.

While Tony dreamed of falling, and drowning, and not being able to breath, Bruce dreamed of blood. Sometimes it was his own blood in flashbacks from the days Ross had experimented on him like a lab rat. More often, it was the blood of others surrounding their broken, smashed bodies as he looked on in horror, unable to believe what he had done.

Most distressingly, he had started to have dreams where Tony was the one who was lying broken, bloodied and too still on the ground with his arc reactor cracked and dark, devoid of its reassuring glow. Though he knew when he was fully awake that the Other Guy would never hurt Tony, the nightmares always seemed so real that he woke up in tears with feelings of loss and guilt crushing his chest. In those moments it only made sense that he had lost Tony forever, and only the glow of the reactor through the sheets and the sound of Tony breathing next to him reassured him that it was all a dream.

Those nights he longed to reach over and touch the reactor. To feel its hum and know it's was still working. To lay his head against Tony's chest and hear his heart beating to reassure him that all was still well in his world. Still, he would never do it, and he would never ask. He knew how jumpy Tony could be about the reactor, and he didn't blame him after what Obie had done. Even if he was more than willing to let Bruce touch it while he was awake, it didn't escape Bruce's notice the way Tony started any time Bruce unexpectedly brushed over the reactor's surface, (whether through clumsiness while working, or while enjoying extracurriculars). It wouldn't be right to startle Tony awake that way.

"Did your nightmare involve the arc reactor?" Tony asked one night as he noticed a still visibly shaken Bruce staring at the blue glow in the middle of his chest.

Bruce stammered incoherently, but was unable to answer.

"Did it?" Tony asked again gently.

Bruce nodded and the found his voice enough to whisper, "It was broken, smashed."

"You know the Other Guy wouldn't hurt me, right?"

Bruce nodded again and replied quietly, "I know. But it still . . ."

"Scares you," Tony finished before he smiled gently and added. "But I'm okay. Completely unsmashed."

He grabbed one of Bruce's hand and pressed it to the reactor. Its slight vibration felt reassuring beneath his palm.

"Still working," Tony whispered. He reached over and gently guided Bruce to lay down with his head resting on Tony's chest and wrapped him in his arms, "Nothing to worry about."

Bruce brought a hand up to cover the reactor, and nuzzled Tony's chest. He fell asleep to the sound of his beloved's heart's strong, steady rhythm. A constant reminder that despite his worst nightmares and fears they had not yet been parted, and he was safe in his lover's arms. 

Bruce and Tony were far from a "normal couple," but that didn't mean their love was any less real. And nothing expressed that love more than the ways they worked to keep each other feeling safe.


End file.
